LinkedIn fights for the right to tell customers when the feds want their data
Summary
LinkedIn, owned by Microsoft, is fighting US government subpoenas (official court orders demanding information) that come with secrecy orders preventing the company from notifying users whose data is being requested. Microsoft's top lawyer argues that courts and Congress should limit these secrecy orders and require the government to justify why information requests must remain hidden, citing both Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches and First Amendment free speech rights.
Solution / Mitigation
The source explicitly mentions House legislation passed on August 31 that "would place clearer limits on secrecy orders, require greater accountability, and help ensure that secrecy is the exception – not the rule." Microsoft calls on the Senate to "act promptly to send these historic reforms to the President."
Classification
Affected Vendors
Original source: https://www.csoonline.com/article/4222946/linkedin-fights-for-the-right-to-tell-customers-when-the-feds-want-their-data.html
First tracked: September 16, 2026 at 08:00 PM
Classified by LLM (prompt v3) · confidence: 95%